Residential fires occur with alarming frequency. Not only are residences constructed of many flammable materials, but relatively recent developments in residential construction compound the inherent fire risk. For example, increasingly popular wooden truss-based construction includes metal plates that conduct heat between truss members, resulting in sudden collapse when critical truss members give way. Additionally, there has been an increased use of micro-laminate and pressed board flooring materials, which include adhesives that cause fires to burn faster and hotter. Further, prevalent heat-retaining thermal pane windows, while energy-efficient, pose an increased hazard in a residential fire, causing hotter environments and contributing to flash over. As a result of these constructions, structural deterioration in residential fires occurs more rapidly than ever before, and the need to locate potential fire victims quickly is even more urgent as a result.
It is estimated that, in the United States alone, more than 25,000 people are injured and 4,000 are killed in fires each year, many of which occur in residences. Of those injured, approximately 2,800 are children that are fourteen years of age or younger; an additional 850 such children are killed in residential fires each year. Of these children, it is estimated that more than 40% are under the age of 5, and 70% are under the age of 10. It has been found that most residential fires originate in a bedroom, where fire victims often succumb to smoke inhalation. Too often, victims are injured or perish before they can be found and rescued by rescue personnel.
Conventionally, an outward-facing window sticker has been placed on a window pane of a child's bedroom, so that such a sticker could be spotted by rescue personnel in the event of a residential fire. However, such stickers have been used by predators and pedophiles to locate and abduct sleeping children. Accordingly, such externally visible stickers have fallen out of favor.
As a result, virtually all search and rescue operations in smoke-filled and/or burning buildings rely on a search procedure in which a firefighter, etc. enters the building, sweeps behind the entry door for a victim, then follows a wall to the right or left of the door while sweeping the whole room, until a doorway is reached and entered, and the process is repeated for the next room. While this technique is effective, it is inefficient and time-consuming.